President Donald Trump on Saturday seemed to quell any hope that the U.S. and China could make progress soon in resolving the countries' disputes that have resulted in hundreds of billions of dollars in tariffs and continue to take a toll on U.S. agriculture exports.

National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow confirmed Friday on CNBC's Fast Money Halftime Report that negotiators for both countries were preparing to meet on the sidelines of the upcoming G20 summit in Buenos Aires. Kudlow was not optimistic the talks, but he sparked some hope.

"It may bear fruit, or it may not," Kudlow said. "Thus far unfortunately China's response to our asks have been rather unsatisfactory. So, we'll see. Maybe negotiations between the two heads of state will bear fruit."

But just a day later Trump discounted any near-term negotiations.

"China wants to make a deal," Trump said on the south lawn of the White House before boarding Marine One. "China would love to make a deal. I don't think they're ready yet ..."

Trump suggested that the longer the U.S. tariffs are in place, the more willing China will be to bow to U.S. demands because of the toll it's taking on the Asian giant.

"They are not doing well. If you look at their economy, the Chinese economy is not doing well. And we're doing very well. We're doing better than we've ever done," Trump said.